A New Scene
by TessaStarDean
Summary: NOW COMPLETE. I've decided to continue this through a series of 100 word drabbles. Exploring the GreenBenson partnership.
1. Chapter 1

She had been working Sex Crimes for so long, that Olivia was unsure that she really knew how to do anything else. But she needed to get away from Elliot, completely and totally. He was her best friend and she missed him so much that it hurt, but she just couldn't do it anymore. When she found out that Kathy was pregnant and he had moved back home, Olivia knew that she needed to get over him and move on with her life.

As she looked across her new desk in Homicide, Ed Green gave her a big smile.

"You ready to go, partner?" he asked.


	2. Chapter 2

Ed watched his new partner carefully as they worked. He knew that she hadn't been entirely honest with him about why she transferred to Homicide. There were no secrets in the NYPD, and rumor had it that there was something between her and Eliot Stabler, her former partner. Looking at her now, Ed doubted that Olivia would have an affair with a married man. She was too principled, too strong in her own convictions.

He just hoped she understood that she deserved better than to wait around for a man who was too afraid to act on his own feelings.


	3. Chapter 3

Working with Ed was different than Elliot, despite the fact that they were both hotheads with anger management issues. Ed didn't lose control nearly as much – only when a perp pushed him too far and the clock was ticking. But he could always be calmed down, brought back to the safe side of the line. Olivia would just say his name, or rest a hand on his arm and he would realize that he had gone too far.

And he apologized, every time. After that, he would look at her for a moment before speaking..

"Thank you," he said quietly.


	4. Chapter 4

He found out about her parentage during a particularly brutal case.

"You wanna talk about it?" he asked.

"Not really."

"You need a break from the case?"

"I just really want to catch this asshole, Ed."

He didn't talk about it for the rest of the case – not even when the perp's lawyer attacked Olivia verbally for her past. The day the jury returned a guilty verdict, Ed stopped by her desk on his way out.

"Come on," he said.

"Where?"

"Dinner."

"Do you take all your partners out to dinner?"

"All the ones I'm proud to call my partner."


	5. Chapter 5

"Thank you," Olivia said quietly as he walked her home.

"Anytime," he smiled.

They walked in companionable silence then, enjoying the cool autumn breeze drifting around them.

"This is me," she finally said, stopping in front of her building.

"So it is."

"Look, Ed…"

"It's okay, Liv." And somehow, the nickname sounded different than when Elliot said it. "You don't have to tell me."

"I want to. Eventually."

"It's hard for you, isn't it?"

"What?"

"To trust someone again."

"Yeah, Ed. It really is."

"Well, I'm not planning on giving up anytime soon."

She smiled. "I'm glad."

"Goodnight partner."

"Goodnight."


	6. Chapter 6

"You look like crap," she said bluntly as she took her seat across from him.

"Late night," he mumbled, coffee in hand.

"Hot date?"

"Bad hands."

"Excuse me?"

He looked up at her sheepishly.

"I went to Atlantic City. Kept getting bad hands."

"And you decided that was a good reason to keep playing?"

"Hey, I won it all back. And then some."

"Somehow I think you've missed the moral of the story."

"I learned my lesson."

"Oh?"

"Call in sick the next morning."

Olivia rolled her eyes and Ed laughed as they drank their coffee and got to work.


	7. Chapter 7

The shot rang in his head, replaying over and over again. Mingled with it was his heartbeat, pounding loudly and painfully, so that he could feel every beat hard against his chest. Mingled voices and cries whipped around him, but none of it reached him. As cops surged forward to apprehend the suspect, he moved against the crowd, sliding to his knees at the side of his fallen partner. Her eyes were open, but her breathing was ragged, and she turned to look at him as he used his hands to put pressure on the wounds.

"Don't leave me, Liv."


	8. Chapter 8

Ed stared at his hands, his brain refusing to function. A movie replayed through his head in slow motion: the suspect suddenly turning to face them, the gun appearing in his hand, the bullet bursting out of the muzzle and ripping through the air before it exploded into Olivia's chest. He remembered the look of shock on her face as her body registered the pain, and an anguished cry had escaped her lips before she crumpled to the ground.

A hand slid gently into his, gripping it tightly. He looked up to see Van Buren sitting beside him.

They waited.


	9. Chapter 9

She almost panicked when she realized that she couldn't open her eyes. Her mind refused to come to full wakefulness, shying away from the pain that it knew her body was experiencing.

The last thing she remembered was yelling and a searing pain boring through her chest. She tried to focus, but her memories seemed to end there.

So instead she let her mind focus on the one thing that was grounding her at that moment, that was keeping her from slipping back into the darkness – the feel of someone's strong hand wrapped around hers, hanging on for dear life.


	10. Chapter 10

Her eyes fluttered open, and she smiled when she saw Ed asleep in the chair, his hand grasping hers. She watched him for a few minutes, wondering what she had done to deserve such a great partner and friend. It still amazed her sometimes that they had gotten along so well and so fast – she had almost forgotten what it was like to have a partner who didn't want to make her scream in frustration every five minutes.

He stirred, and opened his eyes, his own smile growing when he saw that she was awake.

"Hey," he said. "Welcome back."


	11. Chapter 11

Ed stood up as he saw Elliot storming down the hospital corridor. Positioning himself in front of the door, he refused to let him through.

"Why the hell didn't somebody call me?" he seethed. "That's my partner in there!"

"Your _former_ partner," Ed corrected.

"I want to see her. Now."

"Not until you calm yourself down."

Elliot laughed bitterly.

"Get the hell out of my way."

"You upset her, and I swear to God I'll beat your ass."

Ed stepped aside, grabbing Elliot's arm as he move past him.

"You've got five minutes, Stabler. And then I want you gone."


	12. Chapter 12

"Hey Liv," he said as he stepped into the room.

She noticed again how different it was when he said it.

"How are you?" he finally asked.

"Okay. I heard you and Ed yelling."

"I don't think he likes me very much."

"What are you doing here, El?"

"I came to see you."

"Why?" she pressed.

He just stared at her, unable to give her an answer. Olivia nodded and squeezed his hand.

"Thanks for coming, Elliot, but I'm tired. Maybe you should go."

He winced at the firmness in her voice, realizing that she had finally let him go.


	13. Chapter 13

Ed's eyes widened in surprise when Elliot stepped out of the room only two minutes later.

"That was fast."

"You hurt her, I swear to God –"

"You'll what?" Ed asked, standing. "Like you have any right to threaten me."

"What are you talking about?"

"Look, Stabler, there are two men in Olivia's life who have hurt her the most. Her rapist father – and you."

He opened his mouth to protest, but something stopped him. If he was completely honest with himself, he knew that Ed was right.

"Take care of her," he said quietly before disappearing down the hall.


	14. Chapter 14

"You okay?" Ed asked, sitting beside her bed.

Olivia shrugged. "It was time."

"Still hurts though."

She nodded, her eyes filling with tears.

"It doesn't mean you can't ever be friends with him again. You just need a break. You both do."

"I know," she whispered.

A tear slid down her cheek and Ed's heart broke. Easing himself onto the bed slowly, he put his arms around her and pulled her body against hers. His kindness broke her, and she clung to him, sobbing into his chest. Holding her, he whispered soothing words into her ear and let her cry.


	15. Chapter 15

He noticed the change in her two days after she came back to work. At first he thought it was natural, that she was simply readjusting. Be he soon realized that it was something more.

"Do you two have a problem?" Van Buren asked.

"I don't know, Lieu," Ed replied. "But something's not right."

"You do anything stupid?"

"I don't think so."

Anita watched Olivia closely as the other woman sat at her desk. There was something in the set of her shoulders, in the way she avoided Ed's gaze.

She frowned as suspicions began to form in her head.


	16. Chapter 16

"You're awfully quiet," Ed commented.

Olivia just nodded.

"You want to talk about it?"

"Actually…I was wondering if we could make a stop."

"Where?"

"Cemetery Grove."

Without another word, Ed took a left at the next light. They drove in silence, Olivia staring out her window at the rain. When they reached the cemetery, she directed him to a plot under a willow tree. Ed parked the car and they sat there.

"It's been nine years," she whispered.

He read the name on the headstone and took her hand in his.

"I'll wait here."

She gave him a grateful smile.


	17. Chapter 17

Twenty minutes later, the rain was coming down in heavy sheets. Ed knew that Olivia needed time alone to grieve for her mother. But she was out there kneeling in the grass, with no coat and no umbrella. If he left her much longer, she'd catch her death.

As he got closer, he saw that her entire body was convulsing with the force of her sobs. Silently, he knelt by her side, wrapping his arms around her. She clung to him, her fingers tangling in his dress shirt.

Standing, he lifted her up and carried her back to the car.


	18. Chapter 18

He wrapped her in a blanket and sat her down on the couch, rubbing her arms and back to get her warm. Slowly, she raised her eyes to his.

"Why are you here?"

Silently, he leaned in, brushing his lips against hers. When she didn't pull back, he kissed her more firmly, tangling his fingers in her dark hair. He felt one of her hands snake around to the back of his head, holding him still as she began to kiss him back.

But then she was pulling away, and moving toward the door.

"I can't do this," she whispered.


	19. Chapter 19

He ran after her, confused. He didn't think that he had misread her signs. They had become closer over the time that they worked together, and it had felt right when he kissed her. But now she was running.

"Liv!" he yelled.

He caught up with her on the sidewalk outside. Taking hold of her arm, he spun her around to face him.

"Where are you going?"

"I can't," she sobbed. "I can't do this again."

Seeing the desperation and pain in her eyes, he pulled her against him, wrapping his arms around her tightly. She sank into him, crying.


	20. Chapter 20

"I can't do this," she repeated.

He nodded, understanding. Taking her face in his hands, he forced her to meet his gaze.

"I'm not him," he said firmly. "I'm not Elliot."

She stared at him for a long moment, letting his words sink in. Then a small smile teased at her lips and she was leaning in closer. Brushing her lips against his, her fingers tangled in his shirt collar, pulling him closer. Ed smiled against her, tilting his head to deepen the kiss.

When they pulled back to breathe, he laced their fingers together and led her back inside.


	21. Chapter 21

"You needed to see me?" Anita asked as Ed came into her office and shut the door.

He nodded.

"I need a new partner."

Her face fell.

"You're telling me the two of you couldn't work it out?"

She frowned at the beaming smile Ed gave her.

"Oh, we worked it out. I just don't think it's appropriate to be sleeping with your partner."

Van Buren couldn't help but laugh at that.

"Are you telling me that the great Ed Green has finally been tamed?"

"Happily so."

She nodded, reaching for a form on her desk.

"I'll start the paperwork."


End file.
